The Kaplan New Works Artists

Heather BrittHeather Britt is an accomplished choreographer, dancer and teacher who grew up in Cincinnati and attended the School for the Creative and Performing Arts. After dancing professionally with many modern dance companies in California, she returned home to perform, teach and choreograph in Cincinnati. Heather teaches dance full time at Northern Kentucky University and Uptown Arts. She is the Regional Director of Rhythm & Motion Cincinnati, a dance workout program, at Cincinnati Ballet. Britt’s recent choreography projects include work for Cincinnati Ballet, ArtsWave, Exhale Dance Tribe, Playhouse in the Park, The Ohio Lottery, and concert:nova. The YWCA named Heather a 2011 Rising Star.

Paige Cunningham CaldarellaPaige Cunningham Caldarella studied at Cincinnati's School for Creative and Performing Arts. She received her B.F.A. from the Juilliard School and went on to dance for the Merce Cunningham Dance Company, touring throughout Europe, Australia and the U.S. Mrs. Caldarella holds an M.F.A. from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and is an Assistant Professor at the Dance Center of Columbia College Chicago currently serving as the Associate Chair. She has performed with among others The Seldoms, Colleen Halloran Performance Group, Linda Lehovec, Darrell Jones and Sara Hook. Her choreography has been seen at Chicago's Cultural Center as a recipient of the DanceBridge program, the Krannert Center, Links Hall, the Aronoff Center and Summer Stages Dance in Concord, Massachusetts. Additionally, Mrs. Caldarella has guest taught at the University of California, Berkeley, University of Florida, Gainesville, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, Beloit College and Boston Ballet's summer program.

Jessica LangJessica Lang has attained rare levels of success as a female choreographer continuously working with ballet companies across the US and abroad. Since 1999, Lang has created more than 75 works on companies including Birmingham Royal Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, Kansas City Ballet, Colorado Ballet, Ballet San Jose, Ailey II, ABT II, and New York City Ballet's Choreographic Institute, among many others. American Ballet Theatre presented her work Splendid Isolation III at the Metropolitan Opera House in 2008 and 2011. She has received commissions from the Dallas Museum of Art and the Guggenheim Museum for Works and Process. Lang has also choreographed for prestigious institutions including The Juilliard School, NYU Tisch School of the Arts, The Ailey/Fordham BFA Program, Marymount Manhattan College, SUNY Purchase College, Southern Methodist University, Princeton University, and University of Richmond, among others. She has received grants from organizations including the NEA, Choo San Goh Foundation and Jerome Robbins Foundation. Her receipt of a 2010 Joyce Theater Residency, supported by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, helped launch her own company, Jessica Lang Dance. JLD has been presented in major festivals around the world including New York City Center’s Fall for Dance and Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival. Lang, a graduate of The Juilliard School, is a former member of Twyla Tharp's company, THARP! www.jessicalangdance.com

Amy SeiwertAmy Seiwert enjoyed a nineteen-year performing career dancing with the Smuin, LA Chamber and Sacramento Ballets. As a dancer with Smuin Ballet she became involved with the “Protégé Program” where her choreography was mentored by the late Michael Smuin, and became Choreographer in Residence there upon her retirement from dancing in 2008. Her work is in the repertory of Ballet Austin, BalletMet, Smuin, Atlanta, Colorado, Louisville and American Repertory Ballets as well as Robert Moses KIN. Named one of "25 to Watch" by Dance Magazine, her first full evening of choreography was named one of the “Top 10” dance events of 2007 by the SF Chronicle. Twice she has worked with dancers from New York City Ballet, participating in the NY Choreography Institute at the invitation of Peter Martins. She also directs Imagery, a contemporary ballet company that collaborates with artists of other disciplines and is committed to experimental work from a classical base. Collaborations include works with visual designers Marc Morozumi and Matthew Antaky, composers Daniel Bernard Roumain and Mason Bates, media designer Frieder Weiss and spoken-word artist Marc Bamuthi Joseph.